The University of Hawaii College of Engineering got to spend some quality
time with students from Kawananakoa
Middle School in three separate events. At each event, students
learned what engineering is, found out what
engineers do, and discovered how fun engineering can be.

In May, mechanical engineering students from the University of Hawaii
College of Engineering participated in the 2002 Mini Baja West Competition
in Logan, Utah. It was the first time students from the University of
Hawaii participated in this prestigious event.

How many high school students can say they worked on an underwater robot
or a satellite that will be launched into space next year?
Probably none, unless you happen to be Kailua High School students Nick
Rodin and Stuart Akagi or former Maui High School student Cyrus Camp. These three
participated in the second year of the University of Hawaii College of Engineering's
High School Internship Program.

For most high school students here in Hawai`i, their summer
vacations consisted of hanging out at the beach, working at a summer
job, or going to the movies. However, for three particular high
school students their summer consisted of working in state-of-the-art
laboratories, using high-tech equipment, visiting multi-billion
dollar companies and working on expensive research projects at the
University of Hawai`i College of Engineering.

For past middle school students the most exciting science
project they did was probably dissect frogs. Today it's a whole
different experience and with the way today's students are learning,
we could soon see them create gold in chemistry class, build actual
airplanes for physics class or have robotics competitions.

Every airplane from the Boeing 717 to Air Force One needs just a few things to
fly. Of course it needs wings, the rudder, the elevator, the aileron, the fuselage, the
engines, the flight controls, and a whole lot more. Okay so an airplane needs more than a
few things to fly, but one of the most important parts of an airplane is the spar.

Remember the last time you went to a museum exhibit, it probably wasn't any fun because there were signs everywhere that said, "Do not touch." That disappointed you because you wanted to touch the fragile bones of the 3 million year old dinosaur and the feathers of an ancient Hawaiian cloak, but you couldn't. Fortunately, not all museum exhibits are like that. At the Bishop Museum, there was an exhibit that encouraged you to not only touch, but also play with every display.

Teachers from various schools were not at Mililani Middle School to teach, instead they were there to learn about robotics. The Department of Education and the University of Hawaii College of Engineering sponsored three workshops that involved the mechanics, electronics and programming of robots.

Engineering students from the University of Hawaii at Manoa are on
a roll!
The UHM students finished first and fourth out of the eight competitors
entered in a micromouse competition held recently at the University of
Nevada, Reno.